Cheryl Jackson prayed for a miracle after busted water pipes destroyed most of the groceries at Minnie's Food Pantry in Plano on Christmas Eve.

Her prayers have been answered.

Dozens of people rushed to give money and groceries to the Plano food bank. The amounts ranged from several dollars to a $1,600 donation from a nearby church.

Minnie's has raised about $4,000 since the flood – almost enough to replace the hundreds of pounds of damaged cereals, produce and canned goods that filled five trash bins.

"It's unbelievable," said Jackson, president of the food pantry. "We are going to start the year off just like we wanted to."

The pantry expects to reopen Tuesday as originally planned. Jackson said Minnie's, which is supported by The Giving Movement charity, helps families in need.

Much of its efforts are due to people like Brent Cowan.

Cowan learned about the pantry's troubles and saw Jackson's pleas to the public for help. Cowan pulled out his credit card Monday and donated a "couple hundred dollars" online.

He said he's asked his friends to do the same.

"She had a sincere desire to reach out to the community and serve them," said Cowan, a 57-year-old Dallas banker. "She asked for it, and the Lord uses people to do it."

When the pipes broke Christmas Eve, several inches of water flooded the pantry's floors. Ceiling tiles littered the ground. Pantry volunteers had already delivered Christmas meals to hundreds of families, but they were securing food for the start of the year.

George Rosado heard about the flood, grabbed his 15-year-old son Carter and drove to Minnie's Food Pantry in the 3100 block of Independence Parkway. They threw away spoiled food and helped clear the water. And then George Rosado gave Jackson a $1,000 check. He returned Tuesday morning to donate a space heater.

"I wanted to do something that had a direct impact," he said.

The donations couldn't have come at a better time, Jackson said. The number of families in need has skyrocketed during the recession. A year ago, the Plano food bank gave groceries to about 100 families a month.

A year later, Jackson said, more than 1,000 families stop by the central Plano pantry each month to pick up pasta, peanut butter, potatoes and other goods.

Many of those families live in Plano, home to an increasing number of disadvantaged families despite being named America's wealthiest large city.

"It's hard to get donations, but it's not hard to get people who need the food," Jackson said. "It kills me to know that children go to bed hungry."

On Christmas Eve, when much of the food bank was flooded, Jackson said she didn't understand why God would have let this disaster happen.

Now she knows.

"We've heard from hundreds of people calling to say they didn't know we were here," Jackson said. "The community has really responded, and now my prayer is for the community to continue volunteering